The Secret
by Kaguya Black
Summary: Matsukaze Tenma. The Wind of Revolution. The Captain of Chrono Storm. The cheery boy who faces everything with a determined heart and a bright smile. But does Raimon really know him? Do they know that, deep down, this boy is haunted by a secret he struggles to keep, chased by his nightmare-like past? It seems like they don't know. Until one day, the secret reveals itself.
1. Prologue: Before Everything Starts

_Five dragon years (Fifteen human years) ago, in a prison cell…_

Night. Another starless night. So dark.

How long have I been here since I was captured with my brother? I don't know, nor do I remember. Inside here, time seems to slow down. Have I been here for days? Weeks? Months?

Or have I been here for _years?_

I seriously have no idea. I can't count the days pass by; there's no opportunity to do that in this hell-like place. Everyone was being watched under those pairs of emotionless, metallic and empty eyes.

Footsteps echoed through the hallways as I continued thinking, closing my eyes. Even sleeping is controlled by them. Here, in this dark place, everything is always controlled by them. Our "work time", our rest time, our daily meals, almost everything. Even our thoughts.

They always seem to know everything. I don't know how they do that, and I don't want to know. Dark secrets hide underneath those evil faces, causing deep pain both physically and mentally, over and over again. I don't know why they hide them when they always reveal them at the end.

_Flash. Flash. Flash._

I snap my head up when I see the faint blue lights flashing beside me. _What's wrong?_ I flash back softly, dim green light uncovering the sky-blue dragonet that is hiding under my wing.

He blinks his innocent deep blue eyes and flashes again. _Are you alright, nii-san?_

_I'm just thinking, no big deal._ I fake a smile and pat his dark-colored horns soothingly. _You should be asleep at this time, Riptide. Why are you awake?_

Riptide, my dear brother, smiles back and points at his ears. I immediately understand and go for them, pulling the deaf-aids out. _Sorry. I forgot to help you take them off before bedtime._

He smiles again and shakes his head, flashing Aquatic. _It's okay. I will have to learn how to take them off myself eventually. _He hesitates and looks at the black sky. _Tonight, is starless as usual…do the light of the stars ever reach here?_

"I'm sure they do." A deep but gentle voice says behind us.

Both of us turn around and stare at the dragon, whose black scales hide him in the shadow. We search for a while and finally, locate him. "Are you using your mind-reading skills again?" I huff in annoyance. Riptide doesn't mind though. Instead he grins at him, like he always does no matter what.

The blind dragon's blue eyes glitter in the dark, the scars on his eyelids unable to hide them from shining. "Chill, Shark," he soothes, his talons swiping at the ground in front of him, frowning a bit when they hit the heavy metal balls that are chained to our feet, and goes to us. He pats my younger brother gently, smiling. "I only use it so I can understand what Riptide wants to tell us. After all, I'm not a Seawing, and I don't know how to speak Aquatic or have flashy scales like you do."

_You don't?_ The young dragonet flashes in confusion.

"Nope, I don't." The black dragon answers softly, not wanting to alert the guards. "I'm not a Seawing, little one. I'm a Nightwing, which can blend into shadows or the night sky, and we either have mind-reading powers, see the future, or both. I'm, unfortunately, those who have both powers."

I wave one of my emerald-green talons in the air absently. "Just stop telling us how powerful or unfortunate you are. We're in the same situation, Smokeseer. By the way," I raise my voice just a tiny bit. "Gaomon, are you up?"

"Yes indeed." Another voice answers, rough but not harsh. "Do you think I'm sleeping despite the lights and the noises you guys are making Shark?" He grumbles.

"Walk out of the shadows then, buddy." Smokeseer sighs, Riptide looking at the hider with his sparkling dark blue orbs.

The voice groans. "I'm doing this because Riptide wants me to." He then comes out, his blue and white pelt visible under the dim light, the red bandana and gloves standing out. He turns his yellow glare into a soft gaze when he sees my brother, resting, no, _hiding_ under my green wings and patted by the blind Nightwing…or should I say hybrid? If I remember correctly, his mother is a Nightwing when his father is a Nigh-Icewing hybrid. That's why he has those ice-blue eyes and white spikes. Other than that, he looks completely like the night-loving tribe.

Gaomon, on the other hand, comes from a totally different place called Digital World. I don't know where it is; most of us here, in this hell-like place, are from different universes, they say.

The Digimon's complaint snaps me back to reality. "I really _hate _these chains and metal balls." He glares at them. "They are making movements difficult to perform. And they certainly don't look good on Riptide. Seriously, after they deafen him, can't they treat him a bit better?"

"I'm afraid not." I sigh again and grab my brother's talon. _Are you feeling uncomfortable?_

_Nope, don't worry nii-san,_ He flashes and grins.

Gaomon spits and cursed. "Baka. They're all baka! He's just a child!" He stays at the other side of my brother and glares at the hallway outside those electric metal bars.

"Hush," Smokeseer warns, "we don't need another day sleeping separated. And we certainly don't need their attention. Shikashi, I must say you're right, Gaomon. Riptide is just an innocent child. And yet they made him deaf and scarred all over. This is not acceptable."

I grit my teeth, looking at those scars, some of them still bleeding. "And not just him. There are plenty of children out there in other cells, being treated the same way. This is unforgivable."

Riptide seems to know what I'm talking about. _Don't worry,_ he tells me, and a dim light glow around him. A moment later, he turns into a tanned young boy with brown hair and metallic blue eyes. He is wearing an over-sized long sleeve shirt and a pair of pants, and he is smiling.

"Nice," Smokeseer comments. "If I remember correctly…your name is Matsukaze Tenma?"

"H-hai," the boy stammers as he tries to talk without the deaf-aids. I quickly pass him the small earbuds and he puts them on, frowning a bit as they are not properly functioning, due to the bad treatment here, in this large prison they try to convince us as "home."

Gaomon sighs and strokes the tanned boy's hair, which, strangely, is shaped into whirls of wind. "Even in human form, your brother is as innocent as usual," he looks at he and says.

"Hmm…Shark, show us yours." Smokeseer suddenly blurts out, locking his blind gaze on me.

I gulp and shake my head. "No _way._ I'm not going to show you. Why should I anyways?"

"Come on, why not show us?" The Nightwing smirks. "Unless you don't want to show us cause you're…ugly! Yup! Definitely the best and the most reasonable explanation!"

"Just _what_ did you say?" I retort. "I simply don't want to get into trouble."

"Please nii-san…" Tenma begs, looking at me with those metallic, soft blue eyes. Smokeseer smirks beside him when Gaomon simply laughs quietly. "C'mon, Shark. Your brother is begging you."

Gritting my teeth, I know they've grabbed my point. A sharp one. I won't admit it, but yes, after what happened to Riptide/Matsukaze Tenma, the guilt that never let go of me makes me listen to almost anything my little brother asks, as long as they're reasonable. And true, I don't see any harm in this request…but still, if we get caught, the punishment is going to be agonizing.

_Are you going to let him down again? Or let him get hurt again? _My little mental voice asks.

_Uh. Yes, you guys win this time._ I curse and close my eyes, changing. A second later, I change into a tall young man with spiky but kept chestnut brown hair and brown eyes, with oversized clothes hanging on me, like I'm a puppet wearing fabric. "There. You like it?" I mutter.

"Thanks very much, Matsukaze Takeru," Smokeseer smirks again when Tenma grins happily, making me feel annoyed yet content at the same time. "Don't call me that," I say instead of a snap or a retort, reaching for my brother and patting him on the head. He grins at me again and rests his head on my shoulder. "Tired?" I asked, naturally concerned as an elder brother.

He shakes his head. "Nah. Just wondering how long we've been here."

I frown at that. To be honest, it was rare for someone cheery like my brother to think about that, but I assume that no matter how happy Tenma always seems, he still wishes to escape.

"Actually, I have a plan that might work. For us to escape."

All of us turn and look at Smokeseer, who seems to answer a silent question that was asked inside my brother's mind. "I know you want to escape, Ten-chan. We all do. Everyone who has been captured, I spoke to all of them, and none is willing to stay at this place any longer. So, we made a plan. And we will be in action in…three days."

The blind Nightwing blinks his blind eyes at us. "Anything you wish to know or add?"

"Yes." Was my reply. I look at him and, without warning, slowly let my mind guard down, allowing Smokeseer to see into my mind. He seems pretty surprised at first, judging from the slightly widened blind blue eyes, but he calms quickly and silently. Letting him listen, I propose a request.

_Smokeseer…those guys are going to brainwash me in three days. I can't possibly escape. _I tell him. _This is very unfortunate, since I'm those who, according to them, can bring out what they want. I don't mind if they do anything to me, as long as my brother is not involved, but I need to make sure he is safe and happy after he gets out of this horrible place, if your plan goes well._

I look down at Tenma, who was dozing off again, his eyes struggling to open. He was so small, so _innocent, _yet he needs to suffer all these trials. I unconsciously hug him tighter. _So Smokeseer…if you ever know what I mean, treat him like a brother or a son of yours…he is everything I have, and he is everything that's precious to me. There's no way I will let him suffer any longer. But I do need a certain person who can help me look after him as he grows up, out of my reach._

Looking up, I met those shocked but sad and understanding blind eyes. _I trust you to do so, my friend. Please, if I don't make it…which is highly possible…help me look after him._

Silence. A long, awkward silence. Then…

"Yes, Shark. Yes, Takeru. I will be happy to do so." The Nightwing answers determinedly.

Unable to hide my gratitude, I show him the brightest smile I've had in my life.

* * *

_The night we escape…_

I know it. I'm not going to make it. I know it when the gates start to come down, in between us. But I need to get these to him, as the last reminders of me, his elder brother.

I put on a smile as Riptide grabs my talons tightly, unwilling to let go. "Go after Smokeseer," I whisper, and give him the necklace and the armband, decorated with emerald-green jades.

He is crying, and I hate it. But I don't blame him. My own tears are falling down too. "No nii-san!" He screams, still holding on to me. "I want to stay with you forever! You promised me that!"

"And I'm sorry I can't keep my promise," I croak, looking back. The guards are running toward us. I need to let go. Turning back, I kiss him lightly on his forehead. "I love you, brother."

Then, without warning, I help him put on the necklace and the armband, and slowly I release my talons. "You will get better hearing-aids when you're free," I whisper into his ear. "And then, you'll be happy. Trust me one last time, Riptide. _Tenma."_

He shakes his head desperately when I release my own talons. "I can't be happy without you!"

"You will. With your personality and your ability to make friends, I'm sure you'll be happy again. And once you find your friends…soar high and free. Even if your wings are unreliable sometimes. Even if the past haunts you. You _will _be happy again; I promise you dearly."

Taking in a deep breath, I pushed him toward Smokeseer, who looks at me with one last sorrowful blind gaze before he grabs Riptide's arm and runs off with Gaomon, who is silently crying. I could hear my brother calling for me, but there's no way I can reach him. Not now, not ever.

I turn and stare at the guards with calmness. _Goodbye, my precious brother._ I say to him, knowing that he will not hear those words.

Closing my eyes, I allow these devils to claim me, but not feared. I know that the moment Smokeseer grab his arm, my brother is truly free from them, free from all the danger forever.


	2. Chapter One: Strange Behavior

_Tenma isn't acting like his normal self today._

Fei knows it without hesitation. His captain, who faces everything head-on with a smile, is not entirely with the team or with him. He dribbling skills are _horrible,_ to be honest, and the change is so sudden it is impossible for someone close to him to miss it. And not only his dribbling skills; he is also not listening to instructions or gives them out as quick as he always is.

As Tenma's friend, Fei can't help but feel worried. Well, this is natural. They're friends after all, and it certainly isn't fun to watch him not as worked up as usual without knowing why. The mint-haired boy keeps a close eye on the tanned boy, but still, he can't figure out what's wrong with him. Apparently, he doesn't want to say it, and Fei knows that his friend will eventually tell him when he wants to, so he keeps silent, pushing down the urge to ask directly.

A whistle blows, and it snaps Fei back to reality. "Practice is over! You may all go home. The clubroom will be cleared in 30 mins!" Gouenji Shuuya announces.

Everyone immediately rushes for the change room, causing quite some chaos. It is better at the girls' side though, since the only female soccer player here is Kinako. Fei is temporarily distracted from what he is doing earlier, which is observing his tanned friend. Instead, he walks up to Kinako and starts chatting with her, seemingly completely forget about his thoughts just a few minutes ago.

But not Shindou and Tsurugi.

To be honest, Tenma's strange behaviour is just…hard to miss. True, he smiles at them as always during practice, but those smiles didn't reach up to his eyes. And both of them know the young midfielder well enough to know that _something_ is wrong.

"…The question is, _what_ exactly is bothering him?" Tsurugi says his and Shindou's thought out loud. The navy-blue hair boy eyes his senior. "Do you think I didn't notice, Shindou-Senpai?"

Shindou shakes his head. "I just think you don't care, Tsurugi. You always act like that."

Said boy narrows his orange eyes and gives Shindou a glare. "I _do _care," he states, taking his team uniform off as soon as they duo reach their lockers. "And we are not the only one. Fei must've known something too; from the way he keeps his attention on Tenma, there's no way you'd miss that."

The grey-haired game maker stares at the door as Fei walks in. "Well, it seems like he either forgets to continue focusing on him, or he didn't notice at all." Then something comes into his mind. "By the way…where's Tenma? I don't see him anywhere."

A short boy hears that sentence, and he turns to both Tsurugi and Shindou. "Tenma is already done changing, Tsurugi, Shindou-Senpai. He said that he has something to do, so he will go early."

"Something to do…huh…" Tsurugi murmurs, one of his hands holding his chin. Shindou knows what he is thinking, and his thoughts are proven right. "I wonder what that 'something' is." The striker then turns to the short boy and asks. "Shinsuke, did he tell you what it is?"

The small goalkeeper shakes his head. "Nope…wait a second." He tilts his head as he remembers something. "Tenma was buying some flowers this morning…I saw him on the way to school and…" Then his eyes widen, and he doesn't continue.

"Is something wrong?" Shindou immediately asks, sensing something dark at the sudden stop of Shinsuke's sentence.

Shinsuke looks at them, speechless for a while. Even Fei from a distance notices the heavy aura. He walks up to his teammate. "Do you know something?"

"…" The small goalkeeper looks around to make sure that only Tsurugi, Shindou and Fei are present, not wanting to let too many people to hear his hypothesis. "I don't actually know…this is only a possible guess but…I think he is going to visit someone."

"And why is that making you can't even speak properly?" Tsurugi raises one of his eyebrows.

The small boy clenches his fists and, after another silence, he lets out a breath. "He…he didn't buy normal roses…those flowers he bought…they were white."

"…N-nani?"

All people present freezes. "…You sure they're white?" Fei mumbles, his green eyes wide and disbelieving. "I never heard him talking about any…dead relative of his." The boy then glances at the trio. "What about you guys? Shindou? Tsurugi? Shinsuke?"

"…Tenma rarely talks about his past." The gray-haired ex-captain shakes his head violently before he speaks, trying to shake himself out from the shock. "So, as a result…we don't know. The only thing we know for now is that he comes from Okinawa, and he is currently living with Kino-san, who, according to him, is a distant relative. Other than that, we know nothing." He then waves his hand, motioning for the others to walk out of the changeroom and find somewhere else so they can talk long and through.

After a few minutes, they reach under a blossom tree and sit down. Although the pink blossom tree is eye-catching, none of the boys have the mood to appreciate it right now. Another long silence passes and, surprisingly, it is Tsurugi who breaks it. "If we really want to know…there's only one way to find out."

The other boys look at him with a confused expression, but Shindou, as always, is the first one who get the navy-blue haired boy's meaning. "You mean…we go and follow him right now?" He asks, startled. "But…what if we are spotted? Tenma's sight is quite sharp." He instantly thinks of the time when he wanted to approach the younger boy silently, but failed because Tenma had seen his exposed feet at the corner of his eyes. "There's a high chance we'll be spotted easily."

"His sight is great, yes, but not his hearing," Tsurugi minds him. "Remember when we followed him all the way to his home? We made a lot of, well, _loud_ noises, but he didn't even notice us until our shadows gave us away." He frowns a bit. "To be honest, his hearing is…terrible."

"Ah…you're right." Shindou nods slowly. "So…you want us to do exactly the same thing?"

"Well, not exactly. This time, we need to hide, in case our _something_ gives us away again." The striker answers. "Anyways, Shinsuke, do you have any clue of where he is heading off to?"

Said goalkeeper tilts his head to one side as he thinks hard. "Eto…let me think…ah!" His small eyes sparkle. "He said he will be going to the apple tree, near the river bank he always practices on. And he also mentioned that he will be staying there for quite a bit so…I guess if we go right now, we can still find him before it's too late."

"Yosh…let's go guys!" Fei, who has been quiet for the whole conversation, gets up and runs off head-first, followed by his teammates and friends in an attempt to find his best friend.

* * *

When they arrive, they are surprised to see that a girl is already there. "Wait…is that Aoi?" Shinsuke points at the girl, who is hiding behind a bush. Following her gaze, the five teen boys realize that she is looking at Tenma, who seems to have no clue that any of them are present.

"Aoi!" The small boy whisper-shouts at her. The girl whips her head around and widen her eyes at the sight of them. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Doing what you're doing." Fei answers, the mint-haired boy joining in, kneeling beside Aoi. "We are worried about him too. His kicks and dribbling were bad during practice, so we decided to come here since Tenma told Shinsuke where he would be going. Do you know something too?"

The dark blue haired girl nods. "I do," she says softly. "Not long after we first met, Tenma brought me to the tree, with the same flowers he had. But he wouldn't tell me what happened, or who he is giving the flowers to. He only told me that he places these flowers once a year to remember someone dear to him…but he, well…"

"Never tells you his past?" Tsurugi guesses.

Aoi looks at him and didn't say anything, silently admitting it.

Shindou closes his eyes and opens them again after a brief moment. "Then now will be a good time to find out." He decides and, without saying anything more, moves toward another bush that's closer to the apple tree. Everyone sweat-drops when Shindou goes into the bush completely.

"He doesn't have to do _that_…" Fei mumbles, following the game maker but hiding behind the bush instead of going inside. Not long after, the others come and hides among him as well. "Thank goodness this bush is big enough to hide all of us." Tsurugi comments.

"Yeah…shh! Tenma's speaking!" Fei and Shinsuke put all of their focus on hearing their friend. Shinsuke even covers his hands on the striker's mouth, which he earns a glare from him.

Five pairs of eyes, five different colors. Brown, orange, black, blue and green, all focused on the apple tree below, and the boy who is sitting right under it, holding the white flowers.

Some God-damming long moment passes before the young brunet finally speak. "…I wonder how you are doing," He said, getting up and putting down the flowers beside the tree trunk. "Life is well. I'm still smiling. So, don't worry. Like you predicted, I made some good friends."

A faint smile appears on the soft face, but it fades almost instantly. "And I did soar high…but not free. Well, perhaps I didn't even soar high…it's impossible without you." He sighs and sits down again, facing the tree trunk. "If only I held on to you…"

Then Tenma did something they never want to see. He cries, but quickly wipes the tears away, seemingly afraid of being seen. "…I still have the necklace and the armband you gave me. I will always remember you no matter what…so don't worry." The captain smiles again. "And…the deaf-aids are doing well."

The guys and girl hiding behind and inside the bush can't help but gasp, and they quickly cover their mouth. _"Deaf-aids?" _Shindou whispers. "I never know that."

"Neither do I," Aoi was covering her mouth with both her hands, eyes glittering with tears. Fei glances at her in brief surprise. "You don't know?"

"Yeah…every time he misses my text messages or call for parties, he merely shakes my question off and say that's because he has bad hearing. He never tells me the truth so…"

Tsurugi interrupts their conversation. "I know you're concerned, but why don't we talk about that once we've finished hearing and looking at the whole thing?"

And everyone quiets down (except Shinsuke, who has been quiet the whole time), resuming their focus on Tenma's words.

"…So far, none of my friends know that I'm deaf. Not even Aoi. I make them believe my hearing is just so bad. It does bother me though…sometimes if I forget to put them on, I'll be late for school, since I can't hear my alarm clock. But that's okay I guess…"

He takes out his green phone and checks the time. "Oh my! It's already six! Aki-nee will be worried!" He exclaims, those metallic blue eyes wide. He starts to stand up, but stops and turns back toward the tree. "…I will never forget you…" He whispers softly, and with that, he leaves.

The others wait until they're sure the brunet won't spot them accidentally, then let out a sigh. "Well, this time we didn't get spotted," Shindou in the bush comments.

Fei looks at him. "I mean, you're in the bush so…"

"I know, I know." The older boy waves his hand. "Still, it's safe to do that." Shindou then frowns deeply. "So now we know a bit more about him…"

"Ah…he has a…missing relative?" Fei guesses. "Although he seems to think they're dead." The mint-haired boy put his chin on top of his knees. "I wonder if something horrible happened to them." He sighs.

Aoi shakes her head. "I wonder if something horrible actually happened to both of them." She notices the questioning gaze from the boys and continues, grabbing her arm a bit. "There's one time I saw something terrible on him during holidays. We both went to the beach, and it was just suspicious, since he's actually wore the whole of swimsuits instead of just swim trunks. And though he didn't notice, I could see scars, faint but deep, starting from the collar of his swimsuit. But he didn't tell me anything and, well, I got distracted." She shivers as she remembers those scars.

"Long scars…huh…" Tsurugi raises an eyebrow. "Well…we don't know anything other than he might have a tragic past and a missing or dead relative…guess more will reveal as time passes." He then looks at the descending sun and the orange sky. "Anyways, I feel like we should go home."

Shinsuke nods. "Tenma mentioned that it is six so…better head back."

"Actually guys," Shindou interrupts within the bush, brown eyes looking at them. "Um…can you help me out for a bit? I'm stuck inside these twigs and leaves…" He laughs embarrassingly.

Again, everyone sweat-drops. "…then why did you do it in the first place…" Fei repeats what he says earlier.

"For camouflage. I didn't want to get spotted so…guess I should just hide behind one instead of inside next time." Shindou reflects, scratching his head.

Shinsuke chuckles and nods. "Of course, Shindou-san." The others help pull the wavy-haired boy out as well, stumbling on top of each other.

After quite some time, they finally stand up properly again and head toward their home.


	3. Chapter Two: The Dream

_"Hello again, Riptide. How was your day?"_

I open my eyes and look around me cautiously. I am in a place where everything is completely black as the void itself. Using my other senses, I can "see" that I am inside some sort of cave right now, wrapped by tough and unbreakable boulders. The only source of light is two flames in front of me, which show a strong, metal-barred gate. Behind it I can see two pairs of ice-blue eyes, glittering at me.

"Not this place again," I groan, hugging my head. "When are you going to let me go?"

A chuckle. _"Probably never, my little friend." _Those pair of ice-blue eyes seem to soften a bit.

"Just _when_ did I become your friend?" I retort, sitting down in front of the gate and staring straight into those eyes. After years of communication, I'm not scared of those eyes, not anymore. "I didn't remember asking you to be a friend of some sort."

I know he's joking. But still, he is right about us being friends-no matter I like it or not-for a long time. And, to be honest, I like him as my friend. Not because, well, he is kind of inside me so I have to become friends with him to avoid trouble, but because I have gone through a hard time with him, and I simply trust him. I open the gates and go inside, closer to the friend that's still invisible.

_"Chill tiger. We are always good friends. You know that." _Those eyes sparkle in amusement and at me playfully. _"Our relationship is stronger than the ones between your soccer friends, and you know it. We're like, the best buddies in the world! Right?" _He then moves forward in an attempt to break through the iron gate, but I swiftly push him back.

"Right, right." I answer absent-mindedly, closing the gate. "Now, I know you haven't been out for like, _a decade_, but you know it's not time yet."

Gentle flames start to appear in the cave, lighting the space up, and the friend I am talking to finally shows himself under the dim lights.

"He" is a large Chinese water dragon, with sky-blue scales and golden markings over his larger parts, fins on his shoulder and some armours on his claws and legs. "He" wears a helmet that is shaped exactly like his head and therefore, fits on it perfectly. "He" also has sharp and big spines along his back, and his tail is a blade-like big fin, with a silvery-white underbelly, decorated by some dim blue lights that's used for Aquatic, which is the language spoken only by the sea dragons.

_"Awe…that's not fair!" _The dragon whines and curls himself around me, looking at me with big and watery ice-blue eyes. _"You do know it feels like hell, right? Not being out for _ten years! _Please Ten-chan, lemme out~" _He nudges his snort at my face, like Sasuke always does when he is begging.

I laugh and half-pat his snort away. "Sorry but no…not the time yet. People are still awake, and who knows what will happen if they see you, a real dragon?"

_"They'll think you're a god!" _He quickly adds, his large finned tail lashing from side to side. _"And when they think you're a god or some sort, you can release me anytime simply because people wants to see it! Please~~~"_

"Gome Tear, but I really can't…" I apologize, wincing at the sad tilt of the dragon's ears. "I promise I will let you out as soon as I figure out a way or as soon as things start to go back on track, alright? You know I never eat my promises." I lean on his blue-scaled body and look into his eyes.

_"Alright then!" _The dragon, full name Tearykazam, abbreviated Tear, gives me a toothy grin and rests his large head on my lap, which barely fits.

"By the way…I don't remember you being _this _childish from the stories I used to hear from nii-san," I trace the faint lines on his horn. "In the legends, you're supposed to be calm and mature."

_"In the legends, you said," _the big blue dragon rolls his piercing ice-blue eyes. _"But do that guy who tells the legend around actually knows me? I doubt that. Yes, I am mature and calm, but deep down I still like to have fun and play like a normal child."_

I can't help but sweat-drop at that. "But you're the _Lord _of the sea and wind…"

_"And does that mean I can't have fun?"_

"…you win." I sigh and raise both my arms up, signalling my defeat. Tear simply grins.

A long silence passes before I sigh again, patting my dragon. _"What's wrong? You sighed a lot these days." _He says worriedly, nudging my chin again.

"…Just thinking about nii-san." I try to fake a reassuring tone but fail, tears strolling down from my face. "I miss him like a lot…just thinking about him makes my heart aches…if only I held on to him when we escaped…then he might be with me right now, away from the disasters he might be suffering from…or maybe he died from…after all, I don't even know if he's still alive or what…"

Tear is silent for a moment before he replies to me, catching my tears with his helmet. _"That's not your fault. From what I saw, he willingly let you go instead of the other way around." _I look into his eyes and realize they are shining with wisdom that is only held by the longest-living myth creatures that ever exist, who have seen through the world and had walked on it before the first animal is created.

_"Your brother was stuck in a trap set by those people at that time, and it wouldn't help if you choose to hold on. Shark wants you happy and free instead of scared and trapped. He knows the depths of your potential more than you do, and he also knows that the only way you can release them is to let you go." _

Tear then licks my tears off using his forked tongue, which causes me to smile a bit. _"It is never your fault Riptide…it is _their _fault." _He snarls a bit at the mention of the word "them", but I don't blame him or anything. I hate them too, as much as he hates them.

The cave walls start fading, and I look up in surprise. "What the…wait the dream is ending?! I don't even know it is morning already! I need to wake up soon! I have soccer practice today!"

_"Did you oversleep again Tenma?!" _The big blue dragon gasps and exclaims in frustration. _"Damn it! There are so many things I still wanna tell you about or discuss with you!"_

"Gome! I really don't know I overslept again! I will sleep earlier tonight so you can tell all the things you want to tell and discuss for as long as I sleep! Alright?" I rush toward the iron gate again and walk out, turning back to look at the dragon. _My _dragon. "And arigatou, Tear."

_"For what?" _He tilts his head in confusion.

Again, I can't help but laugh. Tear is simply so cute and kind-hearted; I don't even know why he is sealed inside my egg like some sort of monster. "Thanks for comforting me," I smile at him and shut the gates.

He is quiet for a second, then grins brightly. "My pleasure, Tenma!"

I nod again and, with that, I exit my dream and wake up in the real world, gasping at the clock as I see the time. 7:45am?! That is _so late! _Soccer practice is starting already!

Rushing around in my room and the nearby washroom, I quickly get changed and grab my school bag and soccer uniform. Then I run downstairs, saying hi to Aki-nee and the others before I quickly swallow everything on my plate.

After that, I slam the doors as I speed toward outside, starting another sad but hopefully-will-be-bright day.

* * *

**_Shindou's POV_**

_Meanwhile, in the soccer building…_

"Shindou, are you okay?" Kirino asks worriedly when I walk in, the others either focusing on stretching or casting curious looks to our direction. "It's nothing," I lie, not willing to tell my best friend what happen yesterday. Not yet, when he doesn't seem to notice anything wrong with our captain lately.

"Then can you please explain why the legs of your pants are ripped like that?" The pink-haired boy crosses his arms in front of his chest and eyes me suspiciously.

I swallow hard and look down. Indeed, they are ripped because I was hiding in the bush yesterday…I guess I should never, ever do that again. "I fell hard on the ground on the way home…some twigs were on the ground so they ripped a little…anyways," I change the subject quickly, hoping Kirino won't notice. "Is everyone here already?"

"Actually Shindou-Senpai, _almost _everyone is here except captain. I wonder if he is still sleeping or is grounded, ya know. With his love of soccer, his grades are probably so low Aki-san has to trap him in his room to study…" A certain teal-headed boy jokes, which earns him a soft smack from Kirino. "Ouch! What's that for, Kirino-Senpai?"

My friend frowns. "That slap is to tell you not to spread false information."

"Hai, hai," The first-year mutters and walks away, leaving us alone, still muttering. I can't help but laugh at the sight, which Kirino sighs at. "Seriously Shindou…why are you laughing at me?"

I think for a moment and decide to give him the simplest answer. "Because I think it's funny."

Again, my best friend sighs in frustration and looks at the clock. "Well, if Tenma is not here, we will have to start practice without him…"

"Why don't we wait for a bit more?" Sangoku, our goalkeeper, says patiently. "Sometimes we are late and he always waits for us."

"Yeah, but it is always _us_ who wait for him." Kurama snorts. "Seriously, is his hearing _that _bad? I thought it was a joke when he told us about how terrible his ears are!"

My heart sink at the mention of Tenma's terrible hearing-or should I say deafness? It seems like my teammates actually have no idea that our captain is not capable of haring any sound without deaf-aids, which can never function as well as real ears, resulting in his "terrible hearing".

It seems like either me, Tsurugi, Shinsuke, Fei or Aoi will have to tell them the truth about Tenma really soon…maybe so soon none of us will like it…but what choice do we have?

"…dou? Shindou are you listening?"

I snap my head back up when I name is called. Kirino is looking at me with those concerned eyes again. "Shindou, are you _alright?" _He asks again. "You rarely zone out like that. Is something bothering you?"

To be honest, I am at the edge of spilling the beans out if it isn't for what happens next.

"GOME MINNA!" A rush of footsteps and a familiar voice echo around my ears. I closed my eyes and smile in relief, knowing who is here. "Uh I have to get rid of the habit of sleeping in!"

_Nah, you're not,_ I almost say out loud. _You're here just in time to help silence Kirino for a bit._

"Morning Tenma." Sangoku nods at him with his chin as the brunet speed-walks toward the change room. "Be quick! Practice is starting!" Kurama adds.

"Roger that!" Is the answer from the cheery boy before he slams the change room doors.

Judging from the actions of Tenma just now, perhaps he gains his happy-go-lucky mood back…which is good, because I definitely don't want him to cry like yesterday, under the apple tree. It pains me every single time he is either hurt physically or mentally due to whatever cause. I remember the time when I met the young boy, and wince at how harshly I had treated him.

_Not going to repeat that mistake again. Not going to let him get hurt again. Have to figure out what is bothering him soon, and we will know more about him eventually; His past, the cause of his deafness, and his probably-dead missing relative. Everything will come to the surface slowly._

I made a mental note to myself and walk toward the field, Kirino following me. I can feel his gaze is still on me, probably he is still worried. But I shake that aside as our captain rushes in and, as usual, practice his shoots with Shinsuke, who is trying his best to block them and succeeds.

Without anymore troubling thoughts, I begin to form a team with Kurama and Hayami, playing a mini match with Kirino, Hamano and Kurumada.

Everything seems to be normal. No: everything is normal.

Until that moment when Wandaba screams in terror. "M-MO-MONSTER!" The bear-like robot goes behind Fei's back in an attempt to hide himself. "Don't come near me!"

"What's wrong Wandaba?" The mint-haired boy asks in confusion and annoyance, following his gaze. "It just a hedgehog…" His face color turns paler as he says the words. "A…hedgehog that has light blue eyes, a black snout, ears, white fur, large red claws, and a small tail…"

Tenma, who is just ready to shoot, stops in surprise and listen to Fei's description intensely. I don't know why our captain is suddenly so interested; normally Tenma will carry on for a while more.

"…Its feet have two digits, and its hand have three…its thumbs are clawless…it also has a zigzag-shaped mouth and yellow marks on its belly and under its eyes….gray spikes all over it…the larger strings of fur on the top of its head are yellow, and the fur under its ears also has yellow tips…"

By now Fei is shivering with fear. I walk up front and see what he is seeing.

"What the heck is this…" I manage to whisper out loud, bewildered.

"Shindou-Senpai? Fei? Can I take a look?" Tenma's voice rings beside my ears. Not waiting for an answer, the brunet gently pushes Fei away. His metallic blue eyes merely widen when he sees the creature. But for some reason, the creature widens its own light blue eyes and stares back.

The two simply stare at each other for so long everyone, including the coaches and the managers, form a circle around the two. I can sense something flowing in their stares, and from the look of Tenma, I know that he is not shocked by how the creature looks like.

Rather, he is shocked at why it is here and how did it come here.

"…Tenma?" Aoi says softly.

Then, without warning, the brunet and the creature say each other's name at the same time.

_"Herissmon?"_

_"Tenma?"_


	4. Chapter Three: Herrissmon

_"Tenma, do you know…them?"_

It takes everything for Aoi to say "them" instead of "it". You can't really blame her. This "Herissmon" does look…different. Not only she has never seen a creature like this, she is pretty sure none of the Raimon players, managers and coaches here has ever seen something like Herissmon.

To be honest, she doesn't think creatures that look similar or same like Herissmon exist.

Well, not until now.

The silence is broken when suddenly, Herissmon exclaims in delight. "Is it really you Tenma?! Am I dreaming?!" The little hedgehog curls into a ball and starts rolling around Tenma. "I'm not! It's really you! Long time no see, Tenma!" It yells in a childish yet bright voice, resembling a five-years old.

Laughing, Tenma picks it up and places it on his shoulder, making the energetic and hyper hedgehog stops rolling and sits on his shoulder instead. "Same here Herissmon! How is Dorumon and the others? Is Tailmon still teasing you as always?" He chirps, patting the creature's spiky fur gently.

"Awe, don't mention Tailmon! She's still doing it but I get used to it!" Herissmon responds, nudging his face on Tenma's. "And Dorumon is still living with Shota in the real world. Sometimes he comes back to the Digital World to visit us though! But I MISS YOU VERY MUCH TENMA!" Aoi swears the little hedgehog actually screams the last part right beside Tenma's ears. _That's probably the worst thing you can do to a person using deaf-aids…_ She can't help but thinks.

Perhaps really irritated at not knowing what is happening right now, Tsurugi finally snaps at the brunet and the hedgehog. "This is all very touching and emotional, but _what the heck is happening? _You do realize we have absolutely _no idea, _right?"

"Umm, Tsurugi, you might not want to snap…" Tenma's sentence is blocked by Herissmon's sudden action. It jumps down from his shoulder and glares at the navy-haired boy, who widens his eyes in surprise. "Why are you snapping at us? Are you an enemy? Tenma do I have to beat this guy?"

"Nope don't beat him. He is my friend." Their captain quickly picks Herissmon up, holding it in his arms. "Geez, stop being so aggressive sometimes, you little boy." Casting a glance at Tsurugi, who is ready to kill someone with his death glare, he adds. "The same goes for you, Tsurugi."

"Well, tell that to your little Herissmon first! Besides, I really don't know what's happening!" The striker retorts back, his hands in pockets. "And nor do your teammates know, right?!"

"Tsurugi's right Tenma…we actually have no idea what's happening right now…" Kurumada agrees, letting the brunet to look at his team's dumbfounded faces. Even Shindou and the coaches are confused, which Tenma really wants to laugh at but doesn't dare to.

Instead, he lets out a smile and nods toward the benches. "Why don't I explain it to you over there? It's definitely better than standing. And you do realize that a Digimon is heavy right?"

"Digimon…is that what Herissmon is?" Hikaru asks, looking at the hedgehog, who grins.

"Sou, sou! I am a Digimon!"

"Alright Herissmon, I need to put you down…you're way heavier than the last time we met, and my arms are sore right now." Tenma smiles apologetically at him and lets Herissmon down onto the ground, then walks toward the benches, motioning for his team to gather around. Without much thoughts the team follows, Herissmon rolling beside them, saying that it's easier for him to roll than to walk on his stumpy legs, which they all find reasonable. Once they reach the benches, the first-years start asking questions, watched by the seniors.

Hikaru is the first. "What is Herissmon? I know you said he is a Digimon but…what is it?"

Tenma sits down on the bench quite heavily and answers immediately. "A Digimon is basically a creature that lives in the computer network, though they exist in the phone network as well."

Shinsuke, knowing it is not polite to budge but is really confused by another question that pops up in his mind. "Wait…you said they exist in our _phone network?_ So, does that mean right now, in my phone, there's this Digimon thingy inside?"

"Yes indeed. Digimons exist in every phone and computer that you and I use."

Still not satisfied, the small goalkeeper takes out his phone and stares at it hard. "Then why can't I see some Digimon, like Herissmon?"

"Shinsuke, I'll answer that question later…right now, you need to understand what a Digimon is first, or else the things I'm going to say next won't make sense." The brunet says while scratching his head, which Shinsuke sighs at. "Alright Tenma."

"Thanks. So now you know that a Digimon is a creature inside the network. Like humans, they age and grow, which in their terms, they 'evolve'. There are, in general, six levels they will evolve into, but all of them start as a digital egg."

"When they first hatch, their level is Fresh. Then they evolve into In-Training. Then Rookie, which is the level Herissmon is in right now. The next three levels are Champion, Ultimate, and the strongest one and the last level for most of the Digimons is Mega."

"Where do they come from? I know they exist in the network, but surly they live somewhere?" Aoi asks, tilting her head.

Smiling, Tenma nods. "That's what I'm going to talk about…well, Herissmon can explain it better, so I will be handing this part over to him." He pats the hedgehog beside him, whose spikes are quivering in both excitement and nervousness.

"Digital World, aka Digi-World, is where I come from!" The little creature points are himself proudly. "It existed when the first human-made computer is created, and since then, the Digi-World has been affecting the network. When something in your computer or phone network goes wrong, it might be due to some catastrophic event that's happening in the Digi-World."

"Digi-World is very important since it is where all of the Digimons are born! Good or bad, strong or weak, we all come from there and starts as an egg!" Herissmon puffs his chest out proudly as he continues. "Like where you live in, we also have different continents and habitats, like grasslands, villages, volcanoes, oceans, mountains and so on. The Digi-World is really beautiful!"

"Just wait a sec," Kariya waits until the Digimon is finished. "According to what you said, the Digital World must've been through some terrible events that destroyed the whole world. So how come it is still here? And also," he turns to Tenma sharply, the yellow eyes narrowing into slits. "You said earlier, that Mega is where _most _Digimons reach their limit. What about those lucky ones?"

"Since when did you become that smart Kariya?" Tenma jokes, holding Herissmon, who is sitting on his lap. Then his face becomes serious. "The reason Digi-World didn't perish is because of a few organizations of Digimons that will appear and, well, saves them from danger."

The first-year defender continues to stare at his captain. "What are they called?"

Although almost unnoticeable, Tsurugi who is watching silently from the back swears he sees a sharp glint that appears in those metallic blue eyes for a few seconds, and disappears just as quickly. The same goes for Herissmon's sky-blue eyes. "The Royal Knights."

"And who are they?"

Much to their surprise, Tenma shows actual frustration for the first time, though it is only for a short time. "You're attempting to know everything about them to beat them, I assume." Then he returns to his usual happy and patient tone. "The Royal Knights are a group of thirteen Mega Digimons that swears to protect the Digi-World and their master, who is also the host computer, aka the manager of the Digi-World, Yggdrasil. They are the dream of most Digimons, since they are the guardians and the only ones that are able to evolve into Ultra."

"Ultra…" Fei murmurs, thoughtful.

"Yes, Ultra. That's the highest rank of all the Digimons. Rumors say that not even the Royal Knights succeeds to evolve to Ultra, though some of them have the power that is still sleeping inside them. Currently the one that has done it is Imperialdramon Paladin Mode, who is, according to the legends, the creator of the Royal Knights." Herissmon continues, him knowing about these strong yet mysterious protectors better than Tenma because he is one of the habitants of Digi-World.

"Have you ever seen them, both of you?" Kidou inquires, the adult now very curious.

"When I accidentally travelled into the Digi-World and met Herissmon, no…" Tenma smiles faintly. "But one of my friends' Digimon partner is a Royal Knight themselves, and they actually Warp-Digivolved into one. His name, when in Rookie, is Hackmon. Jesmon when he reached the level Mega. He is very strong even when in Rookie form, and it was kinda not a surprise when out of the three of our Digimons, he is the only one who actually got up to that high rank."

Shaking his head out from his memory, Tenma grins proudly at Herissmon, who seems down when he mentions their adventure and the part where his friend is the only one who becomes a Royal Knight. "But all of us Warp-Digivolved, and Rasenmon and SaberLeomon, which is Herissmon and my other friend's Digimon in level Mega, can beat him one-on-one and actually wins."

Herissmon is definitely lighten up by his words. "Of course! Together, with Tenma and the others, I can beat anything, even the Royal Knights!" He bloats.

All Raimon soccer players laugh at the words fondly. "Like the inspiring sentence, 'together we can beat everything', right?" Amagi walks up and stops in front of the little Digimon and shakes his little claws. "That's the Raimon Spirit, Herissmon!"

"What…?" Obviously confused, said Digimon looks at the senior defender. "Does that mean I'm part of Raimon now? Even though I don't play this soccer thingy?"

"Of course, you are. The way you act and speak already prove that." Shindou guarantees. "And even if we don't let you into Raimon, I'm sure _someone _will no matter what." He glances at the young captain meaningfully.

"What do you mean Shindou-Senpai?" Tenma blushes and retorts weakly, which earn more laughs from his fellow teammates.

"Tenma! You forget to answer my question!" Shinsuke pouts, unhappy. "You said earlier that Digimons exist in networks, right? Then why you and your other friends are the only one that has a partner Digimon? What about us?"

"Oh! Gome Shinsuke!" Said boy apologizes. The whole soccer team goes silent again to listen. "Yes, Digimons definitely exist in your network, and you definitely have a partner Digimon. But why you can't see them…well, they only exist in networks, where Digi-World is, and though some of them did managed to cross the barrier in between Digi-World and the real world and become real, there're special organizations that will take care of it and makes it looks like a normal robbery or car accident."

"Then how did you cross the barrier and go to the Digi-World?" Tsurugi breaks his own silence and asks.

"Well…that really was an accident…" Tenma chuckles embarrassingly, scratching his head. "Even in Inazuma Town, there's this obscure fighting product called the Digivice…I bought one out of curiosity, along with some cards that's required if you actually get into a fight."

"How does it look like?" Hikaru interrupt sheepishly.

"Um, hold on…I actually have it with me…well, I don't know what will happen after that accident and so I carry it around…" Those metallic blue eyes shine when he finally finds it in his pockets and takes it out. "Here you go!"

"This is my Digivice. I bought a blue one since I didn't know which color to choose, and then a weird thing happened." The brunet points gently at the screen of the machine. "It suddenly shone bright, so bright I had to close my eyes, and when I reopened them again, I was in Digi-World. Then I met Herissmon and my other friends and, well, we kinda have a great time, if you don't count how many bad and evil Digimons we need to fight on the way."

He then looks at his teammates in the eyes. "Maybe all you're missing to meet your Digimon is a coincidence or accident like mine. Or maybe it's just not the time yet. It can be that simple. I can't tell you what is missing but, when it comes, you'll get to meet your Digimon, I'm sure." He then grins at Shinsuke brightly. "Though I can imagine who your partner would be."

"Really? Who is it?" His small friend asks, excited.

"Its name is Patamon. Not very strong when he's a Rookie, but terrifyingly powerful when he's a Mega. It is bright, just like you."

"If that's true, I can't wait to meet him!" Shinsuke jumps up and down.

"Now everyone…I'm pretty sure we have some training to do?" Gouenji speaks out loud. The whole team stares at him, dumbfounded, before Fei checks the time and screams in horror.

"Oh my God it's almost 4:00 pm! We only have _two hours!"_

"Wait really?!" Tenma gasps and put his Digivice back, standing up so quickly Herissmon has to get off really quickly. "Let's go practice then! I don't want to miss a day of training myself when El Dorado is on their way to possibly erase soccer again!"

With that, their captain races to the field, his Digimon partner following even though he doesn't know a thing about soccer. The rest of the team follows, but Shindou calls Fei, Tsurugi, Shinsuke and Aoi to him. "What's wrong Shindou-Senpai?" Shinsuke asks, bewildered.

Shindou doesn't waste time. "Turns out Tenma is hiding more secrets than we think he is hiding," he states, his chocolate-brown eyes dark. "Not only we didn't know that he's deaf, we also didn't know about the 'adventure' he had in Digi-World. Maybe he is hiding more."

Aoi nods. "Maybe. But I'm sure he will tell us." She looks at them expectantly. "Right?"

Silence.

"…I can't say anything about it Aoi…" Shindou mutters at last. "Not when even you, who are closest to him, is oblivious…"

"Let's just hope he will," Tsurugi says firmly. "And I'm sure he will."

"Ah…for now, let's go practice. Damn five minutes pass already?!" Shinsuke runs toward one of the goals, complaining about how time passes so fast.

Sharing amused glances with the remaining trio, Fei heads toward his friend, who is practicing his dribbling. "Let's go Tenma!"

"Okay Fei!" Is the brunet's respond before they start a dribble war with each other, Herissmon cheering and trying to join in.

~O~

Unknown to all of them, a silhouette is watching in a dark shadow, his sunglasses and hat blocking their face perfectly.

While watching all of them, especially Tenma, Fei and the little hedgehog, the silhouette whispers quietly.

_"I wonder how long will you be able to keep your true identity as a secret, Riptide…"_

_"…Only time can tell, I guess…"_

And with that, it disappears.


	5. Chapter Four: Fight

_The night before we will be going off to find the strongest dinosaur…_

_"Hey Ten-Chan! Let me out please~ nobody is around anymore!" _Tear pouts in my mind as I walk along the sidewalk, going to the river bank. After some days of observing, I decide that it is safe for me to have a brief walk in the middle of the night while letting the big blue dragon to also take in some fresh air.

However, it is definitely not pleasant when someone inside you is begging to be let out even though you _are _going to do exactly what they want in just _5 minutes._ "Just wait longer Tear…God that's the fourth time. We. Are. Almost. There." I reply, scratching my head in annoyance.

_"Sorry, sorry~ I'm just _so _excited!" _He apologizes, and though I'm not seeing him in my dreams, I can definitely imagine the dragon grinning.

Sighing and putting my hands in my dark blue pant's pockets, I walk down the stairs swiftly and approach the apple tree beside the river bank. At the same time my phone vibrates. Leaning against the tree trunk, I take it out from my white and blue hoodie jacket and see a new message.

It wrote, _Tenma, please make sure to be back before 11:30 pm. I'll be closing the front door very soon. Aki._

I check the time and chuckle. It's just 10:00 pm. There's no _way _I'll be staying for one hour and a half here. Unless…unless Tear wants to be out longer and I agree. Damn, can't be soft-hearted at that anymore…Aki-nee will be asking questions about it if I really go back at 11:30 pm.

Tear's voice, once again, interrupts my thinking, which I absolutely don't like. _"Come on Ten-Chan! We're here! Please let me out now please~"_

"Alright, alright," I close my eyes and imagine my back opens a hole up for the dragon to go out, the same way I let my secondary Keshin, Majin Pegasus Arc out, while playing in a match. My team never notices that instead of the white-winged man, the blue dragon is actually my real Keshin. But I don't need any more questions right now, not after Herissmon showed up three days ago.

Apparently the Digimon has no idea how he crossed the barrier and came here. In one of our private conversations (which Tear also joined), he told me that Digi-World is in danger again, this time from the real world _and _the Seven Great Demon Lords. That's when the three of us realized that, believe it or not, the evil force has found a way to harm Digi-World and the real world.

I drop the thoughts as Tear comes out as a Keshin on my back. Right now, it's a time to relax, and according to Shark, you shouldn't be thinking about anything except relaxing during that time. So instead of worrying about the safety of Digi-World and the world I'm living in, I take a deep breath and let the soft, cool night breeze gently stroke my hair and face, both my hoodie jacket and my yellow T-Shirt inside slightly blown up by the gentle wind.

Unlike other Keshins, the blue dragon has the power to do whatever he wants to do. He curls around me as soon as he is released, his front claws resting on one of my shoulders. _"So, what is Herissmon doing right now?" _Tear asks, tilting his head and looking at me.

Checking the Digivice in my hand, I can see that the screen is midnight-blue, and the bit-map on the screen is curled up. "He is sleeping…playing soccer on his legs that are made for battle must be hard," I mutter. "His stumpy legs are not for soccer…but in order to cheer my friends up, he has been trying so hard…perhaps I should make him rest somehow tomorrow."

_"You sure our little guy is going to like it?" _Tear goes to the river and dips his head in, enjoying the fresh and flowing water. _"After all, he is stubborn. Just like you, I must say."_

"Enough with that nonsense Tearykazam." I snap a little, tired after _three whole days _of practicing. "Of _course,_ Herissmon will like it…from the way he snores in here, he is worn-out, I'm sure. Even _I_ am stressed after those intense training. Heck, gimme a break Kidou-Kantoukun!"

_"Chill Ten-Chan," _The blue dragon comes up after having a nice swim in the river and looks at me. _"You can always go back to Shadow Protectors. If I remember correctly, time stops here the moment we leave, right?"_

I shake my head and sigh. "Not anymore."

_"How come?" _Tear raises his eyebrows in surprise.

"Sorry I didn't tell you Tear…it was very urgent when Smokeseer sent me the message." I start explaining. "Time doesn't stop anymore when we go back…remember the Great War of Revenge, when different universes collided with each other? After the event, time in every universe is no longer on their own direction and pace…they've united."

_"United? I don't understand." _The blue dragon tilts his head more.

"For example, right now it's…10:45 pm here, right?" I check my phone and stares back at him and continues. "In the past, it will be 2:45 am in Wings of Fire Universe and 5:45 pm in Digi-World. But after the event, Smokeseer and the Time Unite discovered that it's no longer the case. When it's 10:45 pm here, it's 10:45 pm in every single universe. Even the Main Base. Get it?"

_"I gotcha Ten-Chan." _Not confused anymore, Tear places his glowing blue claws on my shoulder again, staring straight into my metallic blue eyes. _"…you do understand that it means our mission of spying and secretly helping this universe is much more difficult now, right? With the time now same everywhere and will not stop no matter what, we'll need to make excuses when we leave to report."_

"Yeah…Sunday will be the best choice…wait it's 11:00 pm. Gotta go home Tear." I check my phone again, frowning slightly at the late time.

_"Awe not fair! Only an hour?" _The blue dragon clearly is not satisfied. _"Promise me once we go back to the Main Base after this mission, you'll let me out _every single day."

"Okay fine, I promise." I sigh and Tear grins before he slips back into my mind. Turning away from the river bank, I walk back home, my heart feeling heavy as always.

Of course, I can talk to my friends about my feelings lately. But…they're not him. They don't share the same feelings I have with him. And they certainly will never, ever understand how it feels, to be abandoned by your parents because they sealed a berserk dragon lord in you, and raised by your good-hearted brother, who probably is still being tortured or _dead _because he needs to set me free.

And what I will need to explain my past as well when telling them about my feelings lately. It's natural and simple: people won't understand fully until they know what happened that makes you feel in a certain way. And that is the part I fear the most.

What emotions will I see on their face when they find out my real past and the secrets, I've been keeping for so long? Will they distance themselves away from me? Or will they treat me like a monster or some sort?

That thought terrifies me.

But I can't do anything about it. The only thing I can do is to hold them for as long as I can, to always put on a bright and smiling face so they won't suspect a thing.

And to hope.

To hope about what? I don't really know.

Maybe…to hope that someday, the peace and real happiness that have faded away and become my past will return.

And…to hope that he will return.

* * *

"Hmph…Rockstar says that she was hit by the exact same ball you guys used to hit her." Torb the Jurassic boy explains to the Raimon soccer players after the big dinosaur tried to harm them.

All of them shivers when they hear Rockstar's explanation. "It must be El Dorado…" Shindou grits his teeth and mutters.

Midori, one of the managers, frowns darkly. "They just won't stop, will they…?"

While they are talking, Rockstar is shaking, her tail and head low. "Is Rockstar alright?" Kinako asks, looking at her. "She doesn't seem well."

The big dinosaur growls something, and Torb translates it into Japanese, his tone heavy. "She says she doesn't have much time…the only reason she is alive is because of her son, Big."

Raimon gasps at the shocking news, watching as the baby dinosaur half-runs towards his mother and starts nuzzling her. "Really…" Tenma whispers. At the same time, Herissmon appears out of nowhere, causing the brunet to frown. "Herissmon, what are you doing out here…"

"Woah, what is that?" Torb asks, just as curious as Raimon a few days ago.

"It's coming Tenma!" The little hedgehog says, and the boy's eyes are immediately sharpened with alert. "A big creature, just like Rockstar! And another Digimon, possibly Champion or Ultimate!"

_"Ultimate?" _The brunet widens his eyes in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

"Wait a sec, what is happening? Where did you come out from?" Kariya interrupts, glaring at both the Digimon and his captain. However, Tenma does no more than gives him a warning glance. "What? Why are you looking at me like that Captain? This is the first time you've ever done this." He snaps, his glare sharpening.

Though nobody says anything, it's clear that the others are confused and frustrated that something is happening without them knowing what that thing is. Tsurugi is the one who breaks the brief silence. "Tenma, tell us what's wrong. You aren't helping, all tensed up like that."

"What are you doing here Death Horn?!" Torb yells angrily out of nowhere, and it helps to transfer Raimon's attention away for a bit. Tenma uses this chance to jump away and hides behind a rock without being spotted. As soon as he lands, he immediately starts changing into his usual outfit, which includes his dark blue pants, white and blue hoodie with a yellow T-Shirt and a pair of black runners. He smiles faintly when he sees that his Digivice is with him.

A commotion is already happening while he changes and he can hear his teammates calling for him. "Where's Tenma?!" Shinsuke yells frantically, looking around. Herissmon, however, is not worried. Right now, all his focus is on Death Horn and, of course, the presence of another Digimon that possibly has a higher level than him. The triceratops is now trying to attack Big, and no matter how hard the Raimon players tries to stop him using their Hissatsu shoots, it keeps going for the baby dinosaur.

Just as Kirino is about to scare Death Horn away with the others, Tenma's voice, strong and icy, snaps his attention away. "Move out of the way, all of you!"

_"What?!"_ Nishiki yells back. "There's no way you can beat him on your own! Don't-"

"Yes, there is! Now _back off!"_

Everyone freezes, surprised. That definitely isn't the Tenma they know. Knowing that they probably won't get an explanation, Shindou starts giving out instructions. "Let's hide behind that rock for now!"

The rest of them follows, casting worried glances at the brunet and his Digimon.

"Thanks! I'll explain to you later!" Tenma shouts at them, then looks at Herissmon, who is all tensed, just like him. "You ready, partner?"

"Yes!" Is the answer from the little hedgehog. By now Rockstar has already taken a blow from Death Horn, and all of them know that she doesn't have much left.

"Yosh! Use your quills…now!" Tenma tells Herissmon when Death Horn's soft belly is exposed, leaving him vulnerable for a minute. "I'm counting on you Herissmon!" He adds, grinning.

_"Lightning Quills!" _Said Digimon jumps into the air and rolls a few times before charged quills from his back suddenly shoots out, directed at the soft belly. The triceratops howls in rage and pain when those charged quills stab into him, releasing electricity that can paralyze a small mammal for a good ten minutes.

However, Death Horn is no small mammals, and what they just did makes him even angrier. He turns his head away from Rockstar and, to Raimon's horror, charges at their captain, his eyes now turning into slits, the three-horned dinosaur can't wait to feast on the brunet's blood and flesh.

"TENMA!" They scream, ready to rush out and save the boy.

But things don't happen the way they think they are going to be.

Their captain jumps and lands on a rock, then another rock, circling the angry triceratops. Death Horn roars even louder, thinking he is getting tricked, crushing every single rock, leaving their beloved captain no choice but to jump into the air. "His reflexes are great…but what is he thinking?!" Wandaba sweats hard, forming a small stream of sweat.

"I don't know!" Fei says back, watching the fight. He gasps when Tenma put his hands in front of his face and pull his right arm back, his hand balled into two tight fists. "Wait…_is he trying to punch Death Horn?!" _The mint-haired boy screams in horror, not caring if his voice breaks at the last few words, the only thing he cares right now is his friend's safety.

"Nani?! That will be beyond stupid!" Torb has his mouth gap wide open at Fei's assumption. "A dinosaur's skin is hard as a rock! And that will only anger Death Horn even more if he fails!"

_"Tenma! Don't do it!" _Shinsuke shouts in fear.

If he hears the scream, then he has chosen to ignore it. Landing on a side of a wall, he pushes himself directly to Death Horn using his feet. "That's a really good parkour movement, but _what is he doing facing that dinosaur head-on?!" _Tsurugi snaps, glaring at the boy.

"His chance of surviving is near zero!" Hayami exclaims, which Raimon, again, gasps in horror. "What is he thinking?!" Aoi repeats after Wandaba, her hands over her mouth. "Tenma!"

They never expect what happen next.

With a loud roar, Tenma pushes his arm forward and hit Death Horn right on his left cheek, the force of his punch so powerful it sends the triceratops flying toward his right, landing in front of the rock Raimon is hiding behind. Tenma, on the other hand, lands safely on the ground and manages to stop himself a few meters away from one of the cliff walls, facing Death Horn, who is trying to get up but can't due to Herissmon's attack and his punch.

After he finally gets up, the triceratops sends the brunet a heated glare before he turns and run away, promising him a revenge.

When the dinosaur is long gone, Tenma drops onto his knees heavily, holding his right upper arm, his expression pained. Blood is streaming out from a rather large wound, opened up by one of the triceratops' sharp horns when he punches him. "Guess I should be a bit more careful…" He mutters.

"Tenma! Are you alright?" Herissmon rolls to him and asks in worry, checking his wound but not touching it. "That's large…"

"Lucky you didn't get stabbed in the chest Tenma," Fei runs toward them with a first-aid kit in his hand, Raimon following after him. All of them are clearly relieved while also angry at his careless action. Fei starts talking again as soon as starts treating the wound. "Take off your hoodie. And why did you do that? You could've got yourself killed!"

"Sou! What were you thinking?!" Aoi scolds, hugging her arms in front of her chest.

Tenma smiles embarrassingly while taking off his hoodie, exposing his wound more. They all sigh in relief. Yes, the wound is a little bit large, but he will be alright. "Well, I can't think of anything else…and because I've done something like this before, with Herissmon." He gives his partner an approving look, which Herissmon smiles back at.

"Next time, think before you act you idiot," Tsurugi barks slightly, still angry but mostly concerned. "That scared the hell out of us. We all thought you're going to get smashed. Even if you've done a lot of punching in your little adventure, at least tell us about it first."

"I doubt that you'll let me do it even if I told you," the brunet retorts, thanking Fei after he has bandaged his wound, putting his hoodie back on. "And don't worry. I've survived in situations much worse than the one I just faced."

"Still, that was dangerous, like we said earlier." Taiyou reasons, the orange-haired boy trying to get Tenma to listen. "What if he actually got you? Nobody will want to see that." Shindou nods at that, followed by the rest of Raimon and Torb.

"Tenma, where are your original clothes?" Wandaba asks. "This is definitely not what you wore yesterday. Did you lose them?"

Said brunet smiles and shakes his head slightly. "I returned them already. Check your device."

"Hmph…oh well, it's here. Thank God you didn't lose it…it's very expensive." Wandaba nods in satisfaction.

"Are the clothes more important than his life now? I see how this is. Next time we should just care about his clothes." Kariya jokes, and earns another slap from Kirino. "Ouch Kirino-Senpai! What's that for?" The teal-head hugs his head and looks at the senior defender resentfully.

"That's for saying something serious as a joke," Kirino states. "But like you said, I was only making a joke!" Kariya pouts.

Tenma can't help but laugh at that and, after a second, one by one, all of them starts to laugh as well, breaking the concerned atmosphere.

However, things are not always so easily passed.

Herissmon abruptly stops laughing and instead, looks behind them. "It's the Ultimate Digimon Tenma! They're here!" He squeals in alarm.

"Really?!" Their captain whips around and grits his teeth in hostility that rarely shows. "This is no good…" He touches his wound gently, wincing at the pain. Shindou is the first one who looks at where his captain is looking at, and he widen his eyes at what he's looking at.

In front of them is a black zombie lion-man, with four spikes and a dark gray, almost black mane, like normal lions. Dark purple-colored, it has stitches all over its skin, ribcages visible and definitely sticking out of his chest. It is growling at them, waving his long claws, crimson-red eyes glittering. "Kill, kill." It mutters.

"W-what is this…" is all the gray-haired boy can make out before the beast roars again. "KILL!"

Rockstar huffs, wanting to protect them but herself is already drained from blocking Death Horn's blow. "What is happening?!" Shinsuke cries, hugging himself.

Tenma takes out his Digivice and points it at the beast. As all of them watch, the Digivice gives off information and an image of the beast. "MadLeomon," he reads off, letting both all of them and Herissmon know about the Digimon they're going to face. "A Beast-man, Undead, and Ultimate Digimon. Its attack is Poison Claw, and his Hissatsu is Beast Blaster, releasing his spirit in the shape of a lion's face, which will bite the flesh off of those who dares to stand in its way."

"That guy has crossed the border too, I see…" Herissmon murmurs nervously, cuddling with Kariya and Shinsuke. "But he's so strong…and so fierce…"

"Ah…" The brunet nods, swallowing hard. "And I don't think soccer is going to chase it away…this is going to be an intense battle."

Not waiting for them to finish, MadLeomon flings itself at them. "KILL!" It roars again, blood-thirsty.

"Spread out!" Torb yells and jumps away with Kirino, Hayami, Nishiki and Wandaba. The rest of them either follows Taiyou or Shindou, Tenma and Herissmon hiding behind a rock with Big.

"Tch!" Nishiki curses and grabs a soccer ball, kicking it with his Hissatsu. "Denrai Houtou!" He yells, his right leg turning into a light sword and kicking the ball towards the berserk lion-man, cracking the floor as it flies by.

Sadly, it doesn't cause much damage even though it hit MadLeomon. The lion roars louder, both confused and angered. Its claws turn purple as it thunders "Poison Claw!" And slashes it aimlessly, making the wildlife around him turning black then crumbles into ashes.

"Nani?!" The long-haired midfielder exclaims in disbelief, passing the soccer to Tsurugi, who kicks it with his Hissatsu, Death Drop. MadLeomon roars again when it hits, knocking him backwards for only an inch before it regains balance and releases Poison Claw again. "Dammit!" The ace striker curses, quickly goes out of the attack's range. Rockstar stumbles away with Big and retreat back into their cave, knowing that this battle is not one she can fight and win.

Tenma, who is holding his Digivice, looks at Herissmon. "Herissmon…" He starts but trails off quickly, worried at Herissmon's previous action when he sees the Ultimate Digimon.

"It's okay Tenma…I will try my best!" Herissmon puts on a brave smile, though his stumpy legs are shaking. Seeing this, his human partner hugs him gently, hoping the act can give him courage. "You can do this with me," Tenma whispers. "I have the cards with me, so don't worry."

"Really?" The Rookie Digimon looks up at him with hope.

The brunet smiles back and nods. "Whenever you're ready, Herissmon."

"Alright…! Here I come MadLeomon!" With a squeal, Herissmon runs out of his hiding spot, Tenma following after him but not joining in the battle. Instead the brunet positions himself under the rock, where he can watch the battle and give out instructions.

"Don't worry Herissmon!" He yells, one fist high in the air. "Together we can beat anything!"

"Okay!" Is the Digimon's answer before he rolls faster. As he charges toward the mad lion-man, words that are never said out loud now roars in his mind.

_Tenma, I understand now. Why you always look determined to save everyone, even during our adventure, when we met a Mega Digimon that almost crushed you to pieces._

_It's because of your mysterious but missing brother, right? I'm sorry. I heard all of your words the night when you took Tearykazam-san to the riverbank._

_But I'm not going to let you suffer anymore._

_It's okay if you don't trust me to keep your secret. I understand. But I hope you will tell me all about yourself after this battle. I'll prove that I'm trustworthy enough to keep your secret._

_So…I'll do my best. Even if that means I have to cost my life._

"Needle Point Dive!" Herissmon yells as he curls up into a very tight ball and charges toward MadLeomon, scorching the ground, the lion staring down at him in both surprise and taunt.

"I'll…get you no matter what!"


	6. Chapter Five: Herrissmon Shinka! Filmon!

_"Fortissimo!" Shindou yells, jumping up a little and kicks the ball after a circle of music notes and patterns is formed. "IKE!"_

The ball hits MadLeomon, who is still roaring around, but it doesn't cause much damage other than knocking it backwards a few inches before the Digimon thunders and releases Poison Claw again. Right now, the ground around MadLeomon is scorched in black poison, all the life inside the soil drained and faded away into nothingness.

"Just how strong is this guy?!" Kariya grits his teeth, trying to stop the purple lion-man. "Hunter's Net V2!" Violet strings appear and a net is formed, trapping the raging beast for a few seconds before it breaks it and charges toward the teal-head.

"Nani?!" The defender panics and tries to run.

"Kariya-san!" A childish and high-pitched voice yells from behind, and the said boy whips his head around to see a familiar face, with gray and yellow spikes and, of course, those red claws. "Don't worry! _Needle Point Dive!" _The Rookie Digimon curls himself into a ball and charges toward the raging lion-man, successfully hitting one of its feet.

To their surprise, MadLeomon stumbles backwards and falls down with a loud "THUMP!" "Arigatou Herissmon! I owe you one!" Kariya bows at their little friend before he quickly runs towards Tenma, who is holding his Digivice and some cards. "My God Tenma! I wish I have a Digimon!"

"Like I said, you will meet them when the time has come!" Tenma grins, the rest of Raimon now gather around him. "But I have to assist Herissmon as well…he can't fight that Digimon on his own. It's way too powerful."

Fei looks at his injured arm, which has stop bleeding. "No way I'm letting you do what you did previously, not when you have a wound." He states.

"Of course. I can't fight that Ultimate with my fists." The brunet smiles reassuringly. "From now on, Herissmon will be the one who is fighting. I will help him using these." He waves the Digivice and the cards in both of his hands.

"Cards? How?" Torb exclaims. "That's not good! By the way, are cards eatable?"

"No, they're not." The captain of Raimon laughs. "Watch and you'll see. But I'll need you guys' help later…this Ultimate Digimon is tougher than both of us thought."

"Alright…" Tsurugi murmurs and watches instead, shutting up everyone. By now MadLeomon has stand up again, and is chasing Herissmon around, releasing Poison Claw whenever it can. Herissmon is rolling around again, escaping from the attack.

"Right now, Herissmon! Release Lightning Quills!" Tenma instructs while looking through his cards on his left hand, searching for a right one to use. "Last a little longer, partner…where is it?" The brunet grits his teeth in frustration. Outside of the rock they are hiding behind, Herissmon release charged quills at MadLeomon's possible vulnerable spots, trying to stun the wild beast. Roaring, it slashes again and again.

"…! Thank goodness it's here!" Their captain yells so loud everyone jumps. "What is it Captain?! You scare me out from my body!" Kariya complains, shooting a glare at the excited brunet.

"Gome then," Tenma apologizes lightly, gazing at the card he is holding.

Then, without warning, he scans the card through his Digivice. "Card Slash! Power Charger!"

"Eh?" Shinsuke stammers, bewildered. "Tenma…what are you doing?"

Said boy just smiles at his small goalkeeper friend. "Just watch the battle now." He points toward Herissmon, his eyes glittering, yelling at the same time. "Herissmon! Use Needle Point Dive!"

"I see Tenma!" The Digimon's whole body flashes in white for a split second. "Needle Point Dive!" He rolls into a ball and charges toward MadLeomon.

Stunningly, the lion-man goes flying after the blow hits it, slamming its entire self onto the cliff wall behind it, and drops to the ground.

"…what is that…" Taiyou manages to say, his eyes wide in absolute disbelief. "That hit wasn't _that _powerful before…" He turns his gaze on Tenma, who is the only one that isn't surprised. "Is it because of the slash thingy?"

"Card Slash," The metallic eyes narrow a bit, explaining it to them. "A way to temporarily increase a Digimon's power by scanning a card and letting the Digimon to absorb the card's data to get stronger, but only for a short time." He waves the card he just used. "For example, this card, Power Charger, can increase Herissmon's power. However, the effect stops as soon as he uses an attack or his Hissatsu. Do you guys understand?"

"Yeah…it's kinda like Mixi Max, right?" Fei snaps his finger. "We borrow someone else's aura, aka their power, and increase our skills for a short period of time. They're same in a way."

"Oh," Shindou nods.

"Nice that you guys under…" Tenma's voice trails off as he stares at the battle in alarm. "Wait…"

MadLeomon growls and, climbing up again, it charges toward _them. _Crushing the rock that helps them to hide, it releases Poison Claw…

…And directs it toward Kinako, who is currently the most vulnerable because she is standing at the outside of the little circle they formed. "KILL!" It thunders.

"KINAKO!" They scream in horror, including Herissmon, who is trying to distract the beast. "Look over here, you wild beast!" The Rookie bellows, which is useless.

They all doesn't notice the shadow, and the empty spot that replaces a certain someone.

Huge, poisonous claws slashes through the ground, leaving black claw marks on the ground. Throwing their personal safety aside, Raimon and Torb rushes toward where the claw marks are, searching desperately for the female defender. "Kinako-chan!" Aoi calls. "Where are you?!"

"I'm here!" They turn to their right and saw the girl, unharmed but a little shaken by the sudden charge of the Ultimate Digimon.

"Are you alright?!" The blue-haired manager asks, very concerned. At the same time, Torb looks around. "Eh? Where is Tenma?"

"I'm fine! But he's not!" Kinako says while shaking a familiar silhouette, laying on the ground.

"Who's that?" Kirino questions.

They are horrified by her answer.

"Captain!"

Shindou gasps. "But Tenma is with us all along!" He whips around and starts counting. Much to his dismay, they _are _missing a certain brunet among them. "Shimatta! Tenma!" He runs toward Kinako in full speed, his heart pounding against his chest so loud he swears his teammates can hear it.

Kneeling down, the midfielder immediately notices that reopened and the increased size of his wound. What he also sees is the black on the wound, spreading around the gash. The brunet laying on the ground is sweating hard, his breathing slightly shallow. "What actually happened?" He demands, eyes on his captain.

"You saw it yourself, right?" Kinako helps Tenma to a half-sitting position, letting Shindou to press his hands on the wound, trying to stop the bleeding. By now Tenma has opened his eyes. "I should've taken that hit. But I didn't feel anything. Instead I felt a push and, well, I was out of Poison Claw's reach. But…but Captain took the blow…" A sob escapes from her mouth, and tears start rolling down from her face. "It's my fault…"

"That's my decision."

Kinako raises her head up slowly and stares at the brunet, who is trying his best to speak loud enough for her to hear. "There's no way I can…watch you taking the hit." He smiles at her weakly but soothingly. "That's not your fault. I'm the one to blame, making you guys worried like this."

"Thank God you notice that, baka." Tsurugi, who has arrived, snaps apprehensively. Everyone follows the navy-haired striker. Fei takes out his first-aid kit and starts bandaging, Shindou already helped the injured brunet taking off his hoodie. Silence descend as they watch Fei treating Tenma's wound, all either anxious for their captain or ashamed that they weren't able to do anything.

"…Yurusanai."

A childish, yet icy voice cut through the heavy atmosphere. Tenma raises his head a little and stares at the direction of the voice. "…Herissmon?" He asks softly, confused. "What's wrong?"

_"Zettai yurusanai!" _The hedgehog-like Digimon shouts, so sudden it makes Tenma winces and Raimon half-jumps. "I will not tolerate this! My partner hurt in front of my sight! When I can _at least do something!"_

Herissmon then abruptly turns around and charges toward MadLeomon and charges toward it. "Matte!" Tenma calls out, his whole body tensed in alarm. "Herissmon, don't do it!"

The young captain's words are completely ignored as the Rookie Digimon continues. "Needle Point Dive!" He rolls towards the lion-man, hitting it on its belly. MadLeomon merely grunts, then shoves him away. "KILL!" It roars again, raising its claws.

"Run away Herissmon!" Tenma shouts, Fei already finished bandaging and is now watching the fight with Torb and Raimon. "Damn it run away! _Herissmon!" _The brunet winces, holding his arm a bit. "Don't yell too much. Stressing yourself won't help with your wound, especially now it's poisoned." Fei says, but Tenma doesn't listen.

Right now, all he worries about is his Digimon partner.

"Lightning Quills!" Herissmon yells, shooting electrically charged sharp needles towards MadLeomon, stabbing him on his ribcage. Angered, the light of Poison Claw seems to brighten a bit when the beast-man slashes toward the Rookie Digimon as soon as he finishes Lightning Quills.

_"Herissmon!" _Tenma yells in horror, wanting to rush out but is stopped by his teammates.

After the mist that's caused by Poison Claw fades, there's a small shape laying in one of the claw marks, his spikes still standing up but some of it broken in half, dust all over him. MadLeomon's shadow looms over him, the beast grinning. "Kill! Kill!" It cheers, his claws in the air victoriously.

"Is he…dead?" Torb asks quietly, but nobody answers him. Putting it in right terms, nobody wants to answer him, because they also don't know for sure.

Nishiki notices something. "I don't think that monster is finished yet…"

MadLeomon raises his claws, now balled into fists, and lion head-like spirit wraps around it. "That's…Beast Blaster…" Tenma whispers, his body trembling in fear for his Digimon partner. Fei hugs his friend close, trying to comfort him even though he knows it won't help much in this situation.

The lion-man is grinning, storing power as the spirit on his fist grows bigger, and without warning, it punches toward the Rookie Digimon, beaten up by him earlier and now laying on the ground without strength.

Can't watch anymore, Tenma shut his eyes tight and screams.

**_"HERISSMON!"_**

* * *

At the same time.

His Digivice glows in a bright blue light, so bright everyone needs to shield their eyes, but the screen of the machine remains green. It then flows to the center of the crowd.

In the middle of the screen writes a word in green pixies. Everyone sees it.

"EVOLUTION"

Then the Digivice starts shooting out criss-crossed, chromatin-like structures, and they wrap around Herissmon, who opens his sky-blue eyes as though he senses the power. "W-what's happening?! What are these?!" Midori stammers in confusion.

"It's Digivolution." Tenma, who open his eyes, lets the words roll out of his tongue slowly. "From Rookie to Champion." For some reason, his face is no longer dark, and his eyes are, once again, glittering in victory.

By now the structures have formed into the shape of an egg, with Herissmon inside. _"Herissmon shinka!"_

Out of nowhere, another white light wraps all of them in, and within a second, they are inside the structure, watching the Digivolution. As they watch on, they can't help but gasps and exclaims in wonder.

The skin of the Rookie Digimon starts peeling off, and the speed increases until the Digimon no longer has a skin. Sparks of lightning come in and gives the Rookie Digimon a new skin and, at the same time, a new look.

His quills lengthen and turns into yellow, as well as his snort and legs. His body size increases, and white bandages wrap around his arm and his calves, spikes growing out from the surface of his feet, black belts on his upper arms. The red claws sharpen and sharpen until they look like tiny swords, deadly and piercing.

At the end, Herissmon no longer looks the same. With a slash from both its claws, the egg breaks, and the Champion form of Herissmon steps out. He focusses his blue gaze on Tenma, who, in return, gives him a slight nod, smiling.

With a grin on his own face, the Digimon announces his new name.

_"Filmon!"_

"Fil…mon?" Shinsuke tilts his head. "Not Herissmon?"

"Digimons change their name as they evolve, aka Digivolve." Tenma explains. "Except for 'mon', which is the suffix, they change their prefix."

He is smiling all along, the smile so bright if one doesn't look closely, they cannot notice both of his mouth corners, which are down and hard because of the poison that's trying to claim his life, which he is fighting hard for. "Sa Filmon…show MadLeomon what you can do!"

"Uh!" The newly-Digivolved Champion charges toward the mad beast-man on his hind legs that have lengthen after the Digivolution.

"Lightning Stinger!" he injects a red claw right in the middle of MadLeomon's chest. Lightning sparks shoots out from the spot, destroying the lion's data as much as possible. For the first time, it thunders not in rage, but in pure pain.

"So strong…" Tsurugi whispers, watching with his teammates as the yellow-spiked Digimon kicks and slashes at the larger opponent. "That's…the difference before and after Digivolution…"

"Mina."

They all turn to their brown-haired captain, who nods at three soccer balls beside their feet with a smile. "Filmon will need your help even though he Digivolved. Help him out for me. Please."

"…Don't worry. We will." Kinako performs her usual salutation pose, determined. Raimon, one after another, nods.

"Let's go everyone!" Is Fei's answer before he rushes out. "Mixi-Max! Tyrano!" He yells, the color of his hair turning read and standing up. Placing two hands before him, the dinosaur appears after its green eyes are present.

"Kodai no Kiba!" He flips the ball and kicks, an array of fangs forming around the ball as it flies toward MadLeomon, knocking it right on its forehead. It roars in pain again, stumbling backwards.

"Let's do this Tsurugi!" Shindou rages toward it, the ace striker in front of him, answering with a jump. Once the gray-haired midfielder flips the ball upwards, they kick it higher and higher until a certain height, then smash it down together. "Joker Rains!"

It hits right at the back of MadLeomon, making the beast slams onto the ground face-first. Muffled roar can be heard, but Raimon doesn't give it the time to get up.

"Revenge time you bastard!" Nishiki declares, calling out his Keshin. "Armed!" He calls, then raises his right leg high. "Take this now! Denrai Houtou!"

MadLeomon's head is pushed up forcefully by the ground-scorching shoot.

"Kirino-Senpai, Kariya." Tenma tries to stand up but fails, the poison still invading slowly. "Please stop MadLeomon's movement…that way, Filmon's attack will be more accurate."

"Sit down you baka!" Midori pushes him gently on the shoulder, and the boy slumps down weakly, Aoi making sure his wound is not touched by anything.

"Yeah Captain…and don't worry." Kariya grins in a serious manner. "Please help me, Kirino-Senpai!"

"That's for sure!" Kirino waves his hand and summons a thick layer of mist, working towards the berserk lion. "Deep Mist!"

MadLeomon whines in confusion as the mist surrounds it, and Kariya narrows his eyes. "Hunter's Net V2!"

Violet strings shoot out from his fingers and trap the lion-man inside, contrasting against the beast's purple skin. "There you go Tenma!" The teal-head whips around and informs.

"Thanks…here we go." Said boy takes out another card and scans it with his Digivice. "Card Slash! Strength Plug-In O!"

"What…Tenma…" Filmon, who is fighting with the help of Raimon, feels a rush of energy burst within him. Turning his head, he sees his human partner grinning at him and holding a thumb-up, but still sweating in pain, one of his eyes closed, the other half-opened.

"Ike Filmon!" Tenma shouts, and the said Digimon can't help but winces at the pain he doesn't managed to hide.

"…!" Filmon grits his teeth so loud they screech against each other. "UH!"

_Tenma…you're still trying your best even though you're already hurt._

_…Watch closely, partner. I'm going to beat it up!_

_For you!_

Its red claws glowing, the Champion Digimon raises them and charges forward at a blinding speed. _"Crimson Slash!" _He roars, slashing towards the only weak spot he can find: The ribcages of MadLeomon. "Half of it is for Tenma!" He adds, slashing continuously and quickly, putting all his strength. _"IKE!"_

With a deafening screech, the purple lion-man stops completely and, three seconds later, shatters into a thousand data pieces.

Dead silence.

Then…

"Yata!" Shinsuke raises both his arms up in triumph and runs toward Tenma, who can do nothing more than smiling at them warmly. "Tenma! That work so well!"

"Thanks to all of you helping Filmon out," said boy replies, standing up weakly, supported by Aoi, his white and blue hoodie back on.

"TENMA!" Filmon goes back to Herissmon and rolls toward him. "Did you see that?! I did it! I beat it!"

"I saw it all," The brunet nods, still smiling. "That was amazing!"

"What are you doing?! You shouldn't be standing up!" Fei exclaims in frustration, running to them. "I said, _sit down right now!"_

Everything is happy. Everyone is happy.

Until…

"THUMP"

They turn their heads at the main cause of the loud noise. "…! Rockstar!" Torb calls in terror once he finds out what is happening. "…oh no…she reaches her end…"

"Nani…?" Shindou stammers. "She's dead…then where will we find the strongest dinosaur now?"

Watching at the side, Tenma can't but feel defeated.

And…dizzy.

And weak.

Different colors from the real world suddenly fuse together, and the world is spinning and spinning until nothing make sense anymore.

"Damn it…Rockstar…" Is all he can say before his knees drop against his will.

"Tenma!"

Is it his illusion? Or is Aoi far away from him when she calls out to him?

He doesn't know.

The only thing he knows is…

…how everything goes black in just a second.


End file.
